Lack of job growth concerns observers as recession ends. (Economic Analysis).

It's reassuring to note that most economists are calling for respectable growth in the economy in 2003. In fact, the degree of consensus in that positive outlook is remarkable.

In the eyes of most analysts,, the 2001 recession has been over for nearly a year and the soft patch the economy is in right now is just that, not a prelude to a second decline.

But there are a few things you should know before you close the books on the 2001 recession. For one, the economy outside our windows does not care a whit whether we economists agree or disagree. In the late 1990s, the economy grew right past every stop sign the "consensus" of forecasters tried to put in its …